Arizona Trail: Mormon Lake, part 2

I had a nice break and a snack while waiting for Maureen and Steve. Now they were ready for a break, so we sat for 15 minutes more until they were ready to move.

Crossing Lake Mary Road, we came upon our second water source and replenished our supply, then began climbing Anderson Mesa. The 300-foot incline is gradual, and, in a half-hour, we were on top of this gigantic, flat table, stretching about 7 miles and paralleling Lake Mary Road.

We stopped briefly to discuss our plans. I'd already decided to get to my truck that night. Steve and Maureen wavered, first saying they could make it, then talking about Steve's blisters, which clearly were hurting him.

I figured that a 9-mile walk, (7 on the mesa, then 2 more to Marshall Lake, where my truck was parked) could be completed in a little more than four hours. Agreeing to talk more as we walked, we started out.

I've walked in many countries, in different situations in my younger days, but never on the type of terrain that this mesa proved to be. The rain had made the soil into a mucky, sticky, claylike consistency. Walk four steps, gain 4 inches in height and 4 pounds of weight. At first, we stopped every 10 or 15 steps to knock the muck from our shoes. After a mile of this, we quit trying. When the build-up on our soles got several inches thick, it fell off of its own accord, so we let gravity take its course. This slowed our pace that much more, but there was no getting around it.

Otherwise, the mesa was beautiful. Thin grass made the view look like a pale-green carpet. Small groves of juniper were scattered here and there, and cattle grazed, mooing and staring as we trudged by. Far in the distance, we could see the San Francisco Peaks.

We took breaks every 15 minutes to catch our breath and rest Steve's feet. We couldn't put our packs down without making a mess, so, except for a few times when we found dry ground under a juniper, we rested standing up.

At 7 p.m., with 3-plus miles still to go, Maureen and Steve called it a day. We'd come to a solitary ponderosa pine with enough dry ground underneath it to pitch a tent. The sun had set, but I still had some energy, so I set out to finish the walk.

Maybe a half-mile down the trail, groups of coyotes started talking to each other, and that made for an uplifting feeling. Sounds of wildlife all around, not affected by human encroachment, just doing their thing.

I was having a great time, even as it turned fully dark, until I lost the trail.

I wasn't particularly concerned. According to my GPS, I was only 1.9 miles as the crow flies from my truck. It was pitch black when I found myself face to face with a chain-link fence, behind which were a number of buildings.

It was Lowell Observatory's satellite location. I walked east along the fence for a couple of hundred yards to its end, then turned north. A hundred yards farther on, I ran into a second fence, and went through the same exercise, looping around the compound.

Finally, I was going down a slope, and, a few minutes later, I was on the road. That was a relief, especially since my battery-powered headlight was growing dim.

I walked the last mile to my truck, reaching it at exactly 9 p.m., 13 hours after we'd started.

Steve and Maureen showed up 12 hours later. Steve's feet weren't a pretty sight, but he'd finished the hike with a smile. I suspect it was forced.

This was a fun segment, with lots of eye candy and that pine smell - strong enough even for a pipe smoker to enjoy. The trail, when we didn't lose it, was in fine shape. If we were to do it again, though, we'd first make sure Anderson Mesa was dry.

Mike Hayes of Kingman and his daughter, Maureen Nowland of Phoenix, have resolved to hike the entire Arizona Trail. Each month, Hayes describes a new leg of their trek. This month, they complete their slog through mud along the 33-mile Mormon Lake segment, south of Flagstaff.